WESTMINSTER, Md. – McDaniel will travel to Chestertown, Md., for the 2016 Centennial Conference (CC) softball championship tournament, to be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The third-seeded Green Terror (24-16, 10-6 CC) will take on second-seeded Gettysburg (25-11, 11-5 CC) in Friday's first first-round game at 2 p.m. Top-seeded Washington (20-18, 11-5 CC) and fourth-seeded Haverford (20-18, 9-7 CC) 30 minutes following the conclusion of the double-elimination tournament's first game.
Action will continue on Saturday with three games. The day will begin with an elimination game at 11 a.m. followed by the winners from Friday's games. Saturday's action will conclude with a second elimination game.
The tournament concludes on Sunday with the championship game at 12 p.m. and 30 minutes following, if necessary.
The tournament's champion will earn the CC's automatic bid to the 2016 NCAA Division III tournament, slated to begin on May 13. The NCAA field will be announced at 1 p.m. on Monday, May 9.
McDaniel is seeking its fifth CC championship in its 11th tournament appearance. The Green Terror has seven CC titles overall, including winning the 2015 crown in Westminster.
McDaniel split its regular-season meetings with Washington and Haverford and swept Gettysburg. The Green Terror swept its doubleheader against the Bullets in Westminster on Apr. 23, winning 1-0 in the bottom of the seventh and 10-7. McDaniel split with the Fords to open the conference schedule on Mar. 26. The Green Terror won the first game 11-10 before Haverford took game two 3-2 in nine innings. McDaniel split with the Shorewomen to close the regular season on Saturday. The Green Terror won the opener 7-4 before Washington secured hosting rights with a 2-1 win in the nightcap.
Nine of the hitters in the Green Terror regular lineup are hitting .299 or better this season led by junior Lindsey Miller's (Gettysburg, Pa./New Oxford) conference-best .427 average. Miller has 56 hits, including 10 doubles and four home runs for a .611 slugging percentage. Sophomores Payton Lewis (Valrico, Fla./Durant) and Tayler Hishon (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas) are 1-2 in the conference in walks with 31 and 26, respectively. Lewis is also hitting .345 on the year with nine doubles while Hishon is hitting .343 with 11 doubles, two triples and two home runs. Olivia Kipe (Manchester, Md./Manchester Valley) leads the team with 14 doubles among her 46 hits. She is hitting .351 on the year with 27 RBIs. Jamie Weisser (Chappaqua, N.Y./Horace Greeley) has a team-best 29 RBIs. She is hitting .339 with eight doubles, three triples and four home runs.
Sophomore Valerie Lamb (Miami Gardens, Fla./Miramar) leads the pitching staff a 2.69 ERA in 78 innings. She is 8-3 with 35 strikeouts. Fiona Johnson (Derwood, Md./Magruder) is 8-8 with 69 strikeouts in 101 1/3 innings. Weisser is 5-2 with 10 strikeouts in 50 2/3 innings in the circle.
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